Human Robot opens in South Philly on East Passyunk Avenue

For three years, the owners of Kensington’s Human Robot Brewery have known they wanted a South Philadelphia outpost. They viewed it as the only way to reach those who dwell below Washington Avenue.

“Frankly speaking, South Philly, they never come up there,” said co-owner Ken Correll, referring to Human Robot’s North Fifth Street headquarters, just above Cecil B. Moore Avenue. “We’re like north of the wall. And to us [northerners], they’re south of Westeros, not to be too Game of Thrones about it.”

Starting next week, that’s about to change, as Human Robot opens its fourth (and possibly final) outpost at the corner of 12th and Morris Streets. They plan to soft-open the 12-tap tasting room this weekend, during East Passyunk Avenue’s fall street festival.

“We feel like we’ve got the whole city covered now,” said Chris Roller, who co-owns the 3-year-old brewery along with Correll and Jake Atkinson.

The space at 1646 S. 12th St. was previously occupied by Easton-based Separatist Beer Project, which shuttered temporarily for licensing issues in April. In June, Separatist owner Joe Fay invited West Philly brewery/winery Carbon Copy into the space for a summer-long pop-up.

Separatist’s lease expired earlier this fall (the brewery closed permanently), and the landlord listed the taproom space on the open market. Atkinson, Correll, and Roller applied immediately, along with seven other breweries. Human Robot won out in part because they were willing to commit to a five-year lease.

“The first time we ever walked in here, we were like, ‘We need this space,’” Roller said. “I just knew it was a perfect spot for us.” (In fact, Human Robot had discussed the possibility of taking over Separatist’s lease last spring, but the two parties couldn’t reach a deal.)

Atkinson said that all of Separatist’s staff were offered positions at Human Robot. Bartender Katt van Werkhoven, who worked at both Separatist and Carbon Copy, will be behind the bar yet again.

Unlike Human Robot’s turnkey Schuylkill Banks location in Center City, this space needed some updating. The draft system had to be replaced, and they’ve purchased all-new furniture. They plan to remove the tint from the windows to allow passersby to see inside.

On Wednesday afternoon, they were still unloading glassware, stocking coolers, and putting finishing touches on the place, including a painting of a milk tube (an ultra-foamy pour the brewery specializes in). A dachshund-shaped backlit sign to hang above the bar had yet to arrive.

It may seem as if Human Robot is on a steady march to Philadelphia domination, but don’t get your hopes up about them coming to your neighborhood next.

“We’re done, this is it!” Atkinson said. Even if they wanted to, “we can’t make enough beer,” he added.

Correll estimates Human Robot will make 2,100 barrels of beer this year between its production spaces in Kensington and Jenkintown, where they recently added more tanks.

Opened in early 2020, Human Robot has thrived even as the craft beer market experiences contractions. Part of its success comes from the stay-local strategy the brewery had at the outset. Rather than set its sights on growing a distribution footprint, Human Robot focused exclusively on its own space. (The only non-Human Robot spot to sell its beer is Pizzeria Beddia.)

“Gone are the days where you’re going to produce beer and have it sit on a shelf at the local liquor store, supermarket, beer distributor. There’s no money in it. [The market’s] too saturated,” Roller said. “If we make enough beer to sustain our own bars, then that’s all we need.”

The start-to-finish approach allows Human Robot to control everything about its beer, from the ingredients that go into it to the glassware it’s served in. That also means “if you come here and you buy beer, whether to-go or draft, it’s fresh, always,” Atkinson said.

Human Robot South Philly will be open seven days a week, 4 to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 2 p.m. to midnight Friday, noon to midnight Saturday, and noon to 9 p.m. Sunday. The bar will sell Ploughman cider, Wayvine wines, and canned cocktails. Canned four- and six-packs are available for takeout.

In-house food options are still being determined. Human Robot prefers to work with food partners, like Poe’s Sandwich Joint or Herman’s at the Haus. They’ll know more in a month, Atkinson said.

Correll added that, in this neighborhood especially, nailing down food offerings is not a high priority. “There are 30 to 50 of the best restaurants in the city right outside our door.”